Podcasts about Walgreens Boots Alliance

Send us Fan MailAmerican healthcare spends an estimated $110 per member per month just to administer itself, before a single service is ever delivered. Most of that cost exists because health data still cannot move freely between the systems that need it.Michael Meucci, CEO of Arcadia, joins host John Driscoll to discuss why two decades of interoperability policy have failed to solve the data fragmentation problem facing health systems and payers, and why liberating that data and redirecting the administrative spend it currently requires could be the single biggest lever available for improving both the cost and quality of American healthcare.

Send us Fan MailWhen a teenager expresses suicidal thoughts to an AI chatbot, what happens next?In this clip from our episode “Who Sets the Rules for AI in Medicine?”, hosts David E. Williams and John Driscoll and Dr. John Whyte, CEO of the American Medical Association, break down why minors need stronger protections from AI chatbots than adults do, and why the line between a wellness app and a medical device matters more than the industry wants to admit.Listen to the full episode here

Send us Fan MailEighty-one percent of physicians are already using AI in practice, more than double the rate from just three years ago. The tools are moving faster than the rules, and nobody has agreed on who gets to write them.Dr. John Whyte, CEO of the American Medical Association, joins hosts David E. Williams and John Driscoll to discuss why the medical community needs to lead the conversation on AI guardrails rather than wait for Washington to catch up, and why the most urgent regulatory question right now involves AI chatbots in mental health, where one in six American adults are already using them with no meaningful oversight in place.

Send us Fan MailThe COVID-19 pandemic proved vaccine platforms can move at unprecedented speed. It also revealed how dangerously narrow the world's response really was, built almost entirely on a single technology.Dr. Dan Barouch and Kris Brown, Co-Founders of Vector Sciences, join host David E. Williams to discuss why durable pandemic preparedness depends on having multiple vaccine platforms rather than just one, how their Rheovax platform uses mucosal immunity delivered through the nose to block transmission rather than just prevent severe disease, and why public trust in vaccines depends on being honest about what each technology can and cannot actually do.

Send us Fan MailPeople trust their doctor. They do not trust the bill they get afterward.In this clip from our episode “Why Healthcare Prices Are Like Fight Club”, host John Driscoll and Mark Cuban, Co-Founder of Cost Plus Drugs, break down why pricing transparency, not just lower prices, was the real reason Cost Plus Drugs earned the trust of patients across the country.Listen to the full episode here

Send us Fan MailNobody at the pharmacy counter knows the real price of their medication, and almost nobody in the system actually wants them to.Mark Cuban, Co-Founder of Cost Plus Drugs, joins host John Driscoll on CareTalk to discuss why pharmacy benefit managers control 85% of drug formularies in this country, how spread pricing quietly inflates the cost of everything from generics to hip replacements, and why true price transparency, not just lower prices, is the real disruption Cost Plus Drugs has brought to a $5 trillion industry.

Send us Fan MailGLP-1 drugs were designed for weight loss. Now they may be showing up in cancer research in a way nobody expected.In this clip from our episode “The Business & Science Behind the GLP-1 Boom”, hosts David E. Williams and John Driscoll break down what the 2026 ASCO annual meeting revealed about GLP-1s and their potential to reduce cancer progression in lung, breast, colorectal, and liver cancer.Listen to the full episode here

Send us Fan MailGLP-1 drugs have produced some of the most consistent weight loss results medicine has ever seen. The business of actually getting them to patients is a different story entirely.David E. Williams, President of Health Business Group, and John Driscoll, Chairman of UConn Health, break down the CVS Caremark formulary reversal on CareTalk, examining what it reveals about the economics of GLP-1 coverage, and why emerging clinical research on cancer, long COVID, and addiction may push these drugs far beyond their original indication.

Send us Fan MailWhat if the tools patients use between therapy sessions mattered more than the sessions themselves?In this clip from our episode “Fixing the Access Crisis In Mental Health”, host John Driscoll and Mark Frank, Co-Founder and CEO of SonderMind, break down how a fully integrated platform combining 80 digital interventions with an AI coach is producing outcomes up to 275% better than traditional therapy alone.Listen to the full episode here

Send us Fan MailAmerican hospitals now spend nearly $2 on administrative overhead for every dollar that touches direct patient care. Insurers earn billions in float by sitting on claims for weeks, providers borrow money just to stay liquid, and patients open bills for visits they barely remember.Don Peterson, Founder and CEO of PIM Health, joins host David E. Williams to discuss why healthcare's payment system is working exactly as it was designed to work, and how real-time claims adjudication at the point of care could eliminate prior authorization as it currently exists, cut administrative overhead from 12 to 15 percent down to 2 to 3 percent, and return hundreds of billions of dollars in waste back to patients, providers, and plan sponsors.

Send us Fan MailMore than 160 million Americans live in federally designated mental health provider shortage areas. Even those with insurance often spend months searching for a therapist who takes their plan and has availability.Mark Frank, Co-Founder and CEO of SonderMind, joins host John Driscoll to discuss why fixing the provider infrastructure had to come before solving patient access, and how a fully integrated platform combining measurement-based care with AI-powered tools between sessions is producing outcomes up to 275% better than traditional therapy alone.

Send us Fan MailFor most small businesses, health insurance is their second or third largest expense. And they usually find out what it's going to cost them two to three weeks before renewal.In this clip from our episode “Why Health Insurance Needs Transparency”, host John Driscoll and Ty Wang, Co-Founder and CEO of Angle Health, break down why unpredictable premium increases make it nearly impossible for small businesses to plan, and why the market has accepted this as normal for far too long.Listen to the full episode here

Send us Fan MailNearly half of all Americans get their health insurance through a small business. Most of those businesses have no idea why their premiums go up every year and no real power to do anything about it.Ty Wang, Co-Founder and CEO of Angle Health, joins host John Driscoll to discuss why legacy insurers benefit from keeping small businesses in the dark on costs, and how rebuilding the health plan stack from the ground up on modern, AI-native infrastructure is finally making transparency and customization possible for the employers who have always needed it most.

Send us Fan MailIs it easier to change the medical establishment from the inside or the outside?In this clip from our episode "MAHA Split Over New Surgeon General," hosts David E. Williams and John Driscoll break down what separated Casey Means from Nicole Saphier, and why the switch from outsider advocate to credentialed insider may say everything about how health reform actually gets done.Listen to the full episode here

Send us Fan MailThe collapse of Dr. Casey Means' nomination this week has sent shockwaves through the “Make America Healthy Again” (MAHA) movement. While the tech world debates AI, healthcare is debating the “Saphier Pivot,” the Trump administration's sudden shift from a radical MAHA outsider to a credentialed Fox News regular. With the Surgeon General's office at a crossroads, we have to ask: is the role still a beacon of public health, or has it become the ultimate prize in the culture war?John Driscoll, Chairman of UConn Health and David E. Williams, President of Health Business Group, diagnose the state of the Surgeon General's office, examining what the rapid pivot to Dr. Nicole Saphier reveals about the limits of MAHA's political power, and whether the nation's most visible public health platform can still move the needle in an era of historic distrust in federal health agencies.

Send us Fan MailIf you or someone you love just received a cancer diagnosis, what are the first three things you need to know?In this clip from our episode “Can AI Help Us Finally Beat Cancer”, host John Driscoll and guest Dr. Sanjay Juneja, TheOncDoc, walk through the essential steps every cancer patient should take immediately after diagnosis.Listen to the full episode here

Send us Fan MailA cancer diagnosis doesn't have to feel like a death sentence. The science is advancing faster than most people realize, and what patients know about their own diagnosis can change everything.Dr. Sanjay Juneja, TheOncDoc joins host John Driscoll to discuss why cancer is increasingly a manageable disease, how patient empowerment and early detection are shifting outcomes, and what everyone can do right now to reduce their cancer risk.

Send us Fan MailWhy does it take five years to diagnose a child with a genetic disease when the answer is available in 48 hours?In this clip from our episode “How Genomics Is Transforming Rare Disease Care”, host John Driscoll and guest Katherine Stueland, CEO of GeneDx, expose one of the most frustrating gaps in pediatric medicine today.

Send us Fan MailOne in six children has a developmental delay, and it takes an average of five years to get a diagnosis for a genetic disease. But it doesn't have to. The technology to get answers in 48 hours already exists.Katherine Stueland, CEO, GeneDx joins host John Driscoll to discuss why rare genetic diseases are far more common than most people realize, how whole genome sequencing is transforming pediatric care, and what it will take to bring precision medicine to every child who needs it.

Send us Fan MailWhat if food worked better than medication for managing diabetes?In this clip from our episode “Food As Medicine: From Trend to Treatment”, CareTalk host John Driscoll and guest Spencer Pratt, Chief Growth Officer at NourishedRx, share the clinical data behind their food as medicine approach to diabetes care.

Send us Fan MailFood as medicine is moving from buzzword to real healthcare strategy.In this CareTalk episode, Spencer Pratt, Chief Growth Officer of NourishedRx, explains why nutrition is finally getting the policy, payer, and consumer support needed to impact chronic disease at scale.

Send us Fan MailIs this AI moment in healthcare really different from all the hype that came before?In this clip from our episode “A Brief History of AI in Healthcare”, Lekan Wang, Partner at JSL Health Capital, makes his case for why the data is finally backing up the optimism.Check out the full episode here

Send us Fan MailEvery year, millions of Americans end up in emergency rooms and hospital beds for conditions that could be treated just as well, and far more safely,in their own homes. So why does care still default to the most expensive, most disruptive setting possible? And who's actually doing something about it?Lon Hecht, CEO, Care2U joins host David Williams, President of Health Business Group to discuss bringing high-acuity care into the home, why hospital at home has struggled to scale, and how payers and providers are finally starting to align around a better model.

Send us Fan MailAI has been promising to transform healthcare for decades. So what's actually different this time? From Palantir's early data integration work to the frontier of AI-driven drug discovery, the evidence for optimism is growing and so is the urgency to get it right.Lekan Wang, Partner, JSL Health Capital joins host John Driscoll to discuss the real history of AI, where it's already delivering results in healthcare, and what investors are betting on next.

Send a textHow should healthcare leaders approach AI without getting swept up in the hype?In our recent episode of CareTalk, "Is AI Coming for Healthcare Jobs?", hosts David E. Williams and John Driscoll break down why healthcare leaders need to stop avoiding the AI conversation and start engaging with it seriously.Listen to the full episode here

Send a textBlock just laid off 4,000 people and CEO Jack Dorsey said AI made it possible. The AI jobs story is dominating the headlines in fintech and tech, but what does it mean for healthcare, where hiring has been growing and we hear so much about clinician shortages.David Williams, President, Health Business Group, and John Driscoll, Chairman, UConn Health, discuss where AI is eliminating healthcare jobs, where it's creating new ones, and what leaders should be doing right now to navigate the uncertainty.

Send a textHow dangerous is loneliness to your health? In this clip from our episode “The Wellness Industry Is Misleading You”, host John Driscoll speaks with Zeke Emanuel about the data linking close friendships to longer life, including research showing significantly higher mortality among those with few close relationships.Listen to the full episode here

Send a textThe wellness industry is booming, but is it actually helping people live better lives? With trillions spent on supplements, special diets, and longevity hacks, it raises a bigger question about what really matters for long-term health.Dr. Zeke Emanuel, Author, Eat Your Ice Cream joins CareTalk to discuss the wellness industrial complex, the health risks of loneliness, and why social connection, simple habits, and even ice cream may matter more than expensive longevity obsessions.

Send a textAre medical errors still one of healthcare's biggest failures? In this clip from our episode “One Giant Leap for Healthcare AI”, host John Driscoll speaks with Dr. Robert Wachter, Author of A Giant Leap, about how AI could help reduce diagnostic mistakes at scaleListen to the full episode here

Send a textHealthcare has long promised a digital revolution, yet many clinicians feel more burdened than empowered. With AI now accelerating at a rapid pace, can this moment finally deliver on that promise?Dr. Robert Wachter, author of A Giant Leap, joins host John Driscoll to discuss how AI is evolving clinical workflows and decision-making, why "better than human" is good enough in our overburdened system, and the leadership choices that will determine whether AI reduces burnout or deepens healthcare's existing failures.

In this episode of Innovation and the Digital Enterprise, Patrick Emmons and Shelli Nelson are joined by Mike Maresca, Chief Technology and Transformation Officer at Ulta Beauty. Mike delves into his career journey, highlighting his progression from consulting to leading a major technological transformation at Ulta. He discusses the critical components of Project SOAR, a multi-year effort that aligned teams, data, and platforms to enhance customer experiences both in-store and digitally. Mike emphasizes the importance of a strong guest-focused business-driven IT strategy, born of continuous learning and an innovation culture. He shares insights on Ulta's approach to AI, data centralization, and maintaining a customer-centric philosophy. With a focus on future growth and sustainability, Mike outlines Ulta's bold vision, which includes expanding into wellness and international markets, as well as scaling personalization and marketplace capabilities. Mike shares his advice for aspiring leaders: be bold, listen, harness the power of team, and approach challenges with passion.(00:00) Introducing Mike Maresca, Chief Technology and Transformation Officer at Ulta Beauty(01:22) Mike's Career Journey(03:08) Modernizing Ulta Beauty's Platform(04:47) Ulta Beauty's Customer-Centric Philosophy(05:58) Project SOAR and Digital Transformation(08:21) AI and Innovation at Ulta Beauty(19:07) Sustaining Innovation and Future Plans(22:16) Final Thoughts and AdviceMike Maresca's career spans technology and digital transformation initiatives, in the retail and consulting sectors. Currently, he is the Chief Technology and Transformation Officer at Ulta Beauty. Previously, he held roles at Walgreens Boots Alliance, serving as Global Chief Technology Officer, and Accenture, where he spent nearly 25 years in various tech leadership positions. He earned a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering from Iowa State University.If you'd like to receive new episodes as they're published, please subscribe to Innovation and the Digital Enterprise in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you enjoyed this episode, please consider leaving a review in Apple Podcasts. It really helps others find the show.Podcast episode production by Dante32.

“Everyone older than me was optimizing careers for comfort — I think we need to be uncomfortable. I think we need to push the boundaries.”Vineet Mehra is CMO of Chime - the fastest-growing and most-loved consumer banking service in the U.S. - where he leverages data-driven and cultural marketing strategies to drive growth and challenge industry norms. Vineet is a global marketing leader, Board Director, and advisor recognized for building disruptive, category-defining brands. Previously, Vineet served as Global Chief Customer and Marketing Officer at Walgreens Boots Alliance, where he led the $100B company through its COVID-19 transformation, and as Chief Growth Officer at Ancestry, launching AncestryDNA to redefine consumer genomics. Before that, Vineet served in many rising leadership roles across CPG. At Johnson & Johnson, Vineet was Global President of Baby Care and Global President of Marketing, overseeing a multibillion-dollar portfolio and modernizing worldwide marketing capabilities. Vineet held early leadership roles at Novartis Consumer Health across Europe, the U.S., and Canada, as well as brand-building assignments at General Mills. Procter & Gamble was Vineet's career start — first in Canada in Beauty Sales & Marketing, and later as a regional Beauty Care Brand Manager in Asia - shaping his reputation as one of the industry's most globally experienced marketers. Named among Forbes' 50 Most Influential CMOs, Vineet is committed to advancing the marketing industry — currently serving as an advisor to Spotify, MMA Global, Ridge Ventures, OfferFit by Braze, AI Trailblazers, and Virtuosi LEAP. Previously, Vineet held senior advisory and board roles at WPP, Apollo Global Management, AdTheorent, Adweek, Knotch, and Effie Worldwide — where he served as Chairman of the Board. An avid traveler, Vineet has visited over 80 countries and cherishes creating memories with his family.This episode is hosted by P&G Alum Sudha Ranganathan, who's spent over 19 years in diverse Marketing leadership roles at companies like P&G, PayPal, and LinkedIn where she's honed her passion for customer-centric marketing and talent development.

Send us a textAI assistants like transcription co-pilots and chat-bots are yesterday's news. Now, we're entering the new era of agentic AI. The new tools are powerful but a little unsettling. AI giving advice is one thing, but are we ready for AI to take action on our behalf?In this episode of CareTalk, hosts John Driscoll and David Williams explore the dawn of agentic AI, systems that act autonomously to perform complex tasks, including in healthcare.

Send us a textHealthcare is drowning in messy, inconsistent data, and IMO Health is helping clean it up so organizations can turn information into real clinical insight.In this CareTalk Executive Feature episode, host David E. Williams speaks with John Laursen, Senior Vice President of Commercialization at IMO Health, about how to separate hype from real value in AI healthcare.

Send us a textWhat if rural hospitals could thrive instead of just survive?In this episode of CareTalk Executive Features, WVU Medicine President & CEO Albert L. Wright, Jr. joins host David Williams to share how the health system is redefining rural healthcare, expanding access, advancing innovation, and aligning care delivery through initiatives like Peak Health.

Send us a textVaccines save lives, misinformation spreads fast, and ice cream, believe it or not, might actually be good for you.In this episode of CareTalk, Dr. Zeke Emanuel joins John Driscoll to discuss vaccine myths, public health confusion, and how the healthcare system can communicate science more effectively.

Send us a textWill the $50 billion rural transformation fund save rural hospitals or hasten their demise?  In this episode of CareTalk, hosts David E. Williams and John Driscoll debate whether CMS's plan to reshape rural healthcare can actually work.

Send us a textThe digital front door to healthcare is jammed, and it's costing patients, providers, and payers alike.In this episode of CareTalk Executive Features, host David Williams talks with Dr. Ashish Mandavia, CEO and cofounder of Sohar Health, about how AI and automation can transform eligibility and benefits verification from a frustrating bottleneck into a seamless, real-time process.

Send us a textMedicaid covers nearly 90 million Americans, but coverage doesn't always equal health.What if the real driver of outcomes isn't the doctor's office or an app, but the communityitself?In this episode of CareTalk Executive Features, WiderCircle co-founder and CEO Darin Buxbaum joins David Williams to share how peer-led circles and community engagement are improving health outcomes, boosting member trust, and delivering value for health plans.

Send us a textEvery 90 minutes, someone in the U.S. is diagnosed with ALS — a devastating disease that has long resisted conventional research and treatment efforts.In this episode of Caretalk, Tris Dyson, Founder and Managing Director of Challenge Works, joins host John Driscoll to discuss how prize-based innovation and crowdsourcing could unlock new breakthroughs. Dyson shares his personal journey, why shifting incentives matters, and how bold new models can spark hope for ALS patients and families worldwide.

Send us a textHealthcare sits on mountains of valuable data, but compliance bottlenecks prevent organizations from unlocking its potential.In this Executive Feature episode of Caretalk, Shubh Sinha, CEO and co-founder of Integral, explains how his company is changing that by treating data infrastructure and compliance as one unified system rather than separate processes.

Send us a textHave you ever had your health plan deny a treatment that your doctor says you need? Well, you're not alone. But there's good news: People who appeal insurance denials often win. In this episode of CareTalk Podcast: Healthcare. Unfiltered., hosts John Driscoll and David E. Williams dig into the history of prior authorization, why denials are so common, and what patients can do to fight back.

Send us a textAccess to healthcare in the U.S. is broken, with millions forced to choose between essential needs and seeing a doctor. Traditional clinics are too costly to scale, and telemedicine has hit adoption limits. In this episode of CareTalk, John Driscoll sits down with Karthik Ganesh, CEO of OnMed, to discuss how OnMed's “clinic in a box” is expanding access to care. Ganesh shares his journey across healthcare, why access has always been his passion, and how OnMed's innovative care stations blend the trust of in-person visits with the scalability of telemedicine to address one of the nation's most pressing healthcare challenges.

Send us a textHealthcare spending continues to surge, with pharmacy costs now representing 30-40% of total healthcare spend.   In this episode of CareTalk Executive Features, David Williams speaks with Dr. Alan Pannier, SVP of Product Strategy at SmithRx, about how legacy PBMs' misaligned incentives drive up costs, the toll on patients, employers, and independent pharmacies, and how a modern PBM model focused on transparency, fair reimbursement, and aligned incentives could finally fix what's broken in pharmacy benefits.

Send us a textForget about the price of eggs. It's healthcare costs that are rising fast. Double digit increases are coming for 2026 and cost sharing is rising for employees. Weight loss drugs like Ozempic are adding billions to the bill and AI is a wild card, which could bring costs down or make them rise even faster.  In this episode, David E. Williams and John Driscoll unpack what's driving the rising cost of healthcare and what it means for the future.

With its purchase and breakup of Walgreens Boots Alliance finalized, Sycamore Partners has installed a new CEO. Crain's contributor Jon Asplund talks with host Amy Guth about the future of the now-private retail pharmacy giant.Plus: Kraft Heinz to split into two separate public companies, judge rules Trump's L.A. troop deployment violated federal law, Johnson signs order to brace for potential immigration crackdown, downtown apartment rents continue to climb with little being built and Grubhub settles false advertising class action for $7 million.

Send us a textAccess to mental health care remains out of reach for millions, especially in rural communities. In this episode of Caretalk, John Driscoll speaks with Dr. Tom Milam, Chief Medical Officer of Iris Telehealth, about breaking down barriers through telehealth, tackling stigma, and the promise of technology and AI in expanding timely, compassionate mental health support.

Send us a textSubstance use disorder affects millions, yet less than 10% receive treatment. In this episode of CareTalk, John Driscoll speaks with Dr. Yusuf Sherwani, CEO and Co-Founder of Pelago, about a new approach to addiction care. They explore how Pelago is using virtual treatment, data, and value-based care to break down barriers like stigma, access, and cost—reshaping how we treat one of healthcare's most persistent challenges.

Send us a textPhotos of President Trump's bruised hands prompted a rare public medical update, but what really happens behind closed doors when a President's Health is at stake? Dr. Jeffrey Kuhlman, former physician to President Obama and Chief Quality and Safety Officer at AdventHealth, joins hosts John Driscoll and David Williams to explore the tension between patient privacy and public trust, the need for cognitive testing in aging leaders, and how principles of presidential medicine can improve care for everyone.

994: Leading Through Change Requires Culture, Clarity, and Courage. In this episode of Technovation, Metis Strategy's Andrew Krusell moderates a powerful panel with three accomplished CIOs: Richard Donaldson (CIO of Duke Energy), Neal Sample (CIO of Walgreens Boots Alliance), and Darlene Taylor (CIO of Superior Industries). Together, they share candid lessons and actionable strategies for leading large-scale transformation amid disruption. From building cultural permission for failure and branding your own leadership style to balancing customer needs with operational rigor and navigating AI-driven growth, these executives illustrate how technology leaders can drive meaningful, sustainable change in complex environments.